Arie opened her mouth to say something else, but Abba came bustling up the isle toward her. There was a slightly amused almost smug look on the older woman's face.

"There is a young standard bearer who is looking for you." She pointed towards the door where Lerant and Jess were both standing. Jess was standing close enough to Lerant that Arie was certain she had been holding his hand. It was enough to bring a smile to her lips. It was the sort of act that told Arie a lot about Lerant, especially since she was sure he would receive a good bit of ribbing for if any of the King's Own saw him.

"Thank you, Abba." She hesitated and glanced back at Lerant, but when she turned back to Abba the older woman had a gentle look on her face. "Can you watch things here and let me know if something happens?"

"Of course, dear. You rest up and take the morning to recover. Don't worry about things here." There was something in the older woman's voice that had Arie raising her eyebrows.

"We can use all the healers we can get. I don't think it's a good idea for me to sleep in."

She chuckled. "Perhaps you'll need it."

Then the implications and the smile on Abba's face made sense. Arie's face reddened almost immediately. "There's nothing like that going on. We haven't-." She snapped her mouth shut as Abba struggled not to laugh at her.

"As you say dear, but you should still take the morning to rest." She walked away before Arie could say anything to that.

She sighed and turned back to Lerant. Neal had come up to him and Jess while she had been speaking to Abba. Her young charge was talking very excitedly with the noble healer. Then she noticed the softness in Neal's expression that she hadn't seen before. The entire time she had known the noble he had been sarcastic and cynical. Arie was about to walk over to them when Edith snatched her wrist.

"Promise me you'll stop this. I can't lose any more children." There was a sadness in Edith's gaze that made Arie sure that she knew about Noah's death. It wasn't that Arie had deliberately withheld the information, but she knew it wouldn't have helped her recovery. She realized Edith must have known before she had even come to her home. That was what she had meant when she had accused Arie of killing her children.

"I promise to stop the ones behind this." She felt her heart harden in that moment. Arie knew she wasn't her mother who would have done whatever she could to save everyone. When Arie found Ark she would kill him and any who had helped bring this suffering to the world. She caught sight of Ben's ghost hovering beside Obi. They at the very least deserved to see Ark's blood spilled, Arie thought.

When she turned back to Edith, Arie realized the old woman must have seen her resolve because she nodded and released Arie's arm. "Good, I can sleep well knowing that." Then Edith's gaze wandered to Obi and Ben. Arie suspected she could see the ghosts too. "Take care of Noah."

"I will."

Arie moved off down the aisle towards Lerant. He looked over almost the moment she was close. His expression softened and there were worry lines across his face as his gaze went to Edith behind her. Arie was about to reassure him that everything was alright when Jess threw herself at Arie. The little girl wrapped her arms around Arie's waist and squeezed with an amount of force that startled her.

"The lady knight showed me how to use a spear!"

Arie grinned and patted the girl's hair. "So you can protect me now?"

Jess beamed, "Mhmm!"

"Well good. Did you eat dinner already?"

The girl bobbed her head and then asked with a mischievous grin, "Did you?"

Arie blinked and struggled to respond to this. Beside her was twin choking noises that were unmistakably Lerant and Neal's attempts not to laugh. She glared daggers at both of them knowing who to blame for this predicament. Neither of them were even remotely repentant.

"I blame you both," Arie hissed at them before she turned back to Jess, who still looked very pleased with herself. "No, I have not. Would you care to join me since these two seem busy?"

"Yes." Jess let go of Arie's waist but instantly took her right hand.

Arie looked at Neal and Lerant. "Don't you two have work to be doing?"

Neal sighed, "Sadly yes, but thankfully you've given me more people to deal with so I think I'll go clean up their messes first. But I'm sure this charming gentleman here can escort you ladies to dinner." He grinned and gestured to Lerant. Neal walked past him with a grin while Lerant's face turned pink. "I'm sure the standard bearer can take a knight's responsibility for your safety." Then with a dark chuckle Neal left to get back to his work.

Lerant looked at them with a helpless expression while Jess giggled beside Arie. Finally Arie had mercy on him. "Were you able to speak with them?"

Lerant nodded. "They said we can talk after you get something to eat."

Arie grunted and lead the way out into the street. Night had truly taken hold of the city. Not even the torches and lamps that had been put out were enough to lift the shadows. Instead the twitching shadows coupled with the almost unnatural silence made the night feel oppressive. Their footsteps were too loud in the stillness of the night. And as they walked towards the castle, Arie felt an itch between her shoulder blades. A telltale sign that Twitchy had taught her to recognize as someone watching her.

Arie tried to subtly glance around, but both Lerant and Jess pressed closer to her blocking a good portion of her view around them. She met Lerant's gaze and realized he was trying hard not to around obviously. It was almost a relief to know he sensed it too. Then she realized Jess was more subdued than usual. Even she had an uneasy feeling. Arie squeezed the little girl's hand to reassure her. Jess looked up at her a gave a small smile. It was something, but Arie knew the child's fear was preying on her.

"So, what exactly did the Lady teach you?"

Jess's eyes lit up immediately, her fear forgotten. "She cut me a spear so it fit me." The little girl gestured to about the height of the spear. "She showed me how to hold it without dropping it. It's not even hard to lift!" Jess went into detail about the different stances and attacks that Lady Kel had taught her. Her enthusiasm made Arie certain she needed to continue to have the girl trained. Not only would it be a good distraction from the horrors of what Ark's poison had done to her, but would also serve well to give Jess confidence in herself.

Just as Arie thought this, her own unease sharpened to the point of fear. Arie whirled around to put herself between Jess and whatever threat there was only to knock into Lerant. They both stumbled for a moment until he managed to catch his footing and held her so her wouldn't topple over. Fear still thrummed in her veins making her breath heavily and look around for some threat.

"Arie?" It wasn't Lerant's voice, but Avery's, and it came from the alley that Arie was now facing. "I didn't mean to startle you." There was a hint of senor to the other boy's normally cheerful voice. He stepped out of the shadows and eyed Lerant's hands still on Arie. "Word at the castle was you were workin. I came to surprise you." His usual smile was back in place, but Arie thought it didn't quiet reach his eyes. "Everything alright, Arie?" He said her name with no small amount of sharpness almost like he was daring her to say something.

Lerant instinctively let go of her as if he suddenly realized how it might look if he continued to hold her while out at night. But he remained close to Arie and helped make a shield between the newcomer and Jess. It was a small action that had a smile tugging at Arie's lips.

"I'm fine, Avery. You got back faster than expected."

"Just a few minutes ago, in fact. What are you doing out here?" The tone he used, as if she was some small child or him to protect from the dangers of the world. The annoyance she felt was like fur being rubbed the wrong direction and made her a little sharper than she would have usually been.

"Avery, I am a doctor. Not some child who needs your protection. I haven't needed protection for some time. So, you don't get to take that tone with me."

"As you say, my sweet."

That pet name was enough to make her want to scream. Arie stepped past Lerant and advanced on Avery, her Gift making her eyes glow as she snapped, "I'm not your anything. I have said that before."

Avery dropped his gaze to the ground and nodded pleasantly. Unease stirred anew in Arie's mind. She glanced around looking for where the feeling might be coming from then she remembered the feeling of being followed. That feeling was gone.

"Avery, you didn't happen to see anyone on your way here, did you?"

His head shot up and his gaze studied her face, easily he read her unease. "Why?" His whole body went tense and for the first time since he had helped her run away from the mob all those years ago, Arie saw a coldness in Avery's eyes.

"Before you arrived, it felt like we were being watched from different sides."

Avery turned around slowly. His gaze methodically moved over every shadowed window and alleyway. He listened for sounds that might be out of place. Finally he grunted, "You might be right. So, why don't I walk you folks home. One more person should be a deterrent fer people plannin mischief."

Arie nodded her agreement and took Jess's hand again. Lerant continued to walk to one side of her while Avery sidled up close on the opposite side. Too close if Arie was honest. It wasn't until they made it safely through the castle gates before Avery backed off. He said good night to her, and promised to look into who might be following her. Then he disappeared into the shadows of the stables.